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Ashley Nickle

Women in Produce: Meg Buchsbaum, C&S Wholesale Grocers

Meg Buchsbaum brings a unique combination of perspectives to her role as the national produce merchandiser for C&S Wholesale Grocers.

Experience as a food photographer and stylist, as a classically trained chef, and as a produce buyer for Whole Foods Market make her truly one of a kind.

In her current position Buchsbaum and her colleagues provide support to thousands of independent retailers, from helping write ads to making store visits and advising on ways to increase sales.

Senior vice president of produce and floral Albert Grimaldi and senior director of produce operations Bryan Barnes said Buchsbaum is a perfect fit for the role.

“Her perspective on what to do with food is a tremendous asset to her in her job today,” Grimaldi said. “She knows everything about food. She’s a foodie.”

Buchsbaum stays on top of trends in the industry by reading diligently, touring stores around the country and paying attention to culinary trends.

“Eventually that’s going to flow down to the consumer when they go to the marketplace,” Buchsbaum said.

She started with C&S as a produce buyer and moved into her current role about three years ago, and her company has been thrilled with her performance.

“She’s had a tremendous amount of success,” Barnes said. “She’s well respected by all of our independent customers (and) her vendors.”

Grimaldi and Barnes highlighted Buchsbaum’s passion for produce but noted that her enthusiasm for people has been just as key.

“The passion that she has and brings to her work every day brings success, and she really cares about her customers,” Grimaldi said.

In addition to working with retailers, Buchsbaum runs the C&S food shows and also created a vendor and product guide to show what the company offers.

All of the work is focused on making life easier for customers, and it delights Buchsbaum to see that goal realized.

“What makes me happy is hearing the feedback from the customers, hearing their growth in sales and the changes that they’ve done, whether it’s in the ad. I have a customer — he’s really sweet — he puts in an item and calls it ‘my one-a-week for Meg,’ and that to me is great because they’re taking advice, they’re listening to us, they’re growing their sales, they’re growing their business, they’re making their customer happy,” Buchsbaum said.

Her colleagues described the Women in Produce designation for Buchsbaum as well deserved.

“She’s a tremendous asset to our company,” Barnes said. “She’s an up-and-coming rising star in the produce business, and it’s great for her to be recognized.”